“You already know my name.”
“I know what people call you. That’s not the same thing.”
Her fingers curled tighter around her knees. I watched her weigh the risk, watched her decide whether to trust me with this small piece of herself.
“Maxwell,” she said finally. “Mira Maxwell.”
Maxwell.I filed it away in the back of my mind.
“Nice to officially meet you, Mira Maxwell.” I extended my hand with exaggerated formality, keeping my voice light even as my wolf paced beneath my skin. “I’m Percival, terrible cook and lover of pineapple pizza.”
She took my hand. Her palm was warm, smaller than mine, and the contact sent a jolt straight through my arm. I could feel her pulse, count the beats if I wanted.
Was that because of me?
“Nice to meet you, Percival.”
That name again. My wolf didn’t purr this time, it growled.
I should have let go of her hand. I knew that but I didn’t. Icouldn’t.
And she didn’t pull away either.
My eyes dropped to where our hands were still connected. Then traveled up her arm. Her collarbone. The column of her throat. And finally her face, where those mismatched eyes were watching me with curiosity.
One brown, one blue. Both absolutely fucking devastating.
I’d noticed them before. But this close, with her hand still in mine and her scent wrapping around me, I couldn’t look away. The brown was warm, safe. The blue was wild, ocean deep. The kind of eye you could drown in if you weren’t careful.
Hell, I wasn’t feeling particularly careful.
“Can I say something?” My voice came out lower than I intended.
“What?”
I shifted closer. Just an inch, testing. Her breath caught, but she didn’t move back.
“I like your red hair more.”
Her lips parted. “What?”
I reached out slowly, giving her time to pull away. She didn’t. My fingers found a strand of copper bleeding through the dark dye, and I tucked it behind her ear. Let my fingertips graze the shell of her ear, the curve of her jaw.
Her skin was so soft. I wanted to trace every inch of it with my mouth.
“The red,” I said, holding her gaze. “It looks beautiful on you.”
She wasn’t breathing. Neither was I.
Her pupils were blown wide, lips slightly parted, and my wolf was howling at me to close the distance. To find out if she tasted as good as she smelled and…
The front door opened, breaking the moment.
Lucian and Solomon filed in carrying grocery bags. Mira jumped slightly at the sudden noise, then caught herself. I watched her shoulders relax when she registered who it was.
Progress. She was starting to feel safe here.
“You’re back early,” I said.
